When Gordon climbed from his car, Bowyer's crew rushed to him and jumped on him behind pit road, leading to a brawl between the two crews. While Gordon's crew fought to protect their driver and the two teams scuffled, NASCAR officials, security officials and other teams tried to break up the brawl.

Bowyer then climbed from his car and ran down pit road and through the garage toward Gordon's hauler, where he was stopped by a NASCAR official. Bowyer pointed at Gordon inside his hauler while a NASCAR official held him back.

Gordon was called to the NASCAR hauler while NASCAR officials continued to separate the teams. Bowyer was called in later. Security personnel were stationed outside the hauler, and reports said they would escort the drivers away from the meeting.

NASCAR officials did not rule out suspending the two drivers but said no penalties would be announced until later in the week.

“They’ve got to do what they’ve got to do just like I had to do what I had to do,” Gordon said.

Gordon said he retaliated against Bowyer because of incidents between the two earlier this year.

"It’s just things have gotten escalated over the year and I’ve just had it,’’ Gordon said after meeting with NASCAR officials. “Clint’s run into me numerous times, wrecked me and he got into me on the backstraightaway and pretty much ruined our day. I’ve had it and was fed up with it and got him back.’’

Bowyer said the initial contact wasn't intentional. He said he barely touched Gordon’s car.

"It makes us look like a bunch of [idiots]," Bowyers said. "It's pretty embarrassing for a four-time champion and what I consider one of the best the sport has ever seen to act like that. It’s just completely ridiculous." (Bowyer later tweeted an apology for using an offensive term to describe their actions.)

Bowyer entered the race third in the Chase standings, 29 points out of the lead. He fell to fourth, 52 points behind leader Brad Kesleowski.

"There's nothing you can do to fix it now," Bowyer said. "It's over with. You've got to go on to Homestead and I've got to try to beat the 5 car (of Kasey Kahne for third).

"That was my opportunity to try to get back in the championship hunt. When you disrupt a championship hunt like that, it's too bad. They ask us not to do that in the drivers meeting and there usually is a lot of respect there. It's crazy. I didn't even need to pass him."

Keselowski, who took over the championship lead after Jimmie Johnson cut a tire and crashed earlier in the race, was beside himself over the whole situation.

He was criticized last week for making contact with Johnson during a late battle for the lead. Three-time champion Tony Stewart said Keselowski had a “death wish” for racing as aggressively as he did while battling Johnson.

“It’s the double standard that I spent a whole week being bashed by a half-dozen drivers about racing hard at Texas and how I’m out of control and have a death wish, and then I see (expletive) like that,” Keselowski said. “That’s (expletive). That’s all you can call that. These guys just tried to kill each other.

“You race hard and I get called an (expletive) for racing hard and (they) called (it) a death wish and I see (expletive) like that and it just (expletive) me off. … It’s just (expletive) ridiculous, and they should be ashamed. It’s embarrassing.”

Pemberton said NASCAR officials will take into consideration both what happened on and off the track when considering penalties. They could penalize Gordon for intentionally wrecking another competitor who still had a shot at the championship, as well as Bowyer and his Michael Waltrip Racing team for the fight afterward.

“It looks like the tempers got away with the best of them out there today,” Pemberton said. “There’s a lot of things to sift through on and off the racetrack.

“We’ll continue to talk and work things out among the teams. … We’ll continue to try to get everybody back calmed down and get it back to a good working situation for everybody.”

Keselowski said NASCAR should stop such retaliation. NASCAR set a precedent two years ago for allowing drivers to retaliate and settle their differences on the track.

“We’ve got a bunch of drivers that feel like they have to retaliate or they’re being challenged as a man, and that’s ridiculous,” Keselowski said. “It’s not what this sport needs. I don’t think it’s good for anybody, and it’s going to get somebody hurt.”

Bowyer crew chief Brian Pattie vowed that his team might try to get even with Gordon in the final race of the season at Homestead.

"If we have nothing to lose," he said, "it will get exciting."

Gordon crew chief Alan Gustafson said Gordon was fed up with Bowyer.

"That's about the fifth time he's run into us," Gustafson said. "After a while, you get frustrated. Evidently, he had had enough.

"If you are going to race like that, you can't get upset when you get it back."

Gordon team owner Rick Hendrick did not want to talk about the incident.

"The best thing for me to do is not to say anything right now," Hendrick said. "Everybody's emotions are pretty raw and I like Clint a lot. He's a good guy. I like all those guys."

— Bob Pockrass contributed to this report from Phoenix International Raceway.